Discussion

biscuits & gravy w/ eggs, country ham

I recently ate breakfast with a friend and what was served was something called "biscuits & gravy" along with eggs and ham. Initially, I was skeptical because I usually never eat dairy but my friend told me to try it all together. So, I made sure to include a bite of the biscuit, sausage gravy, eggs, and ham. Oh my! It was very good! Immediately, I said that I will have to find a way to cook that as soon as I get home. That was a couple of days ago. These are the recipes that I have found:

^#1.I wanted to know what you all thought about these recipes? They were the most simple recipes that I could find that seemed able to be cooked with the limited equipment that I have in the community kitchen where I live. The only dishes I have is a big aluminum stock pot, a crappy pan, a smaller pot, and an even smaller pot.

#2. Issues with the recipes I found:2a. sausage gravy recipe - ^ I don't have anything to whisk with, can I just use a spoon or a fork? Also, can I just use a regular spoon instead of a slotted spoon?

2b. breakfast sausage recipe - ^ no issues from what I can see.

2c. scrambled eggs - ^ There is a pan in the community kitchen but it is not a nonstick pan. Can I still use that in place of the nonstick pan the recipe calls for? If not, then there is also a nonstick pot that looks similar to this but a little bigger: http://www.t-falusa.com/NR/rdonlyres/...

I also don't have a spatula. Will that be an issue?

2d. biscuit recipe: ^ I do not have a cheese grater or a rolling pin. Alternatives?

(or I can see if I can borrow all of these missing items from the front office...

)

Also, I'm nervous about making biscuits because I have never used a rolling pin before or made anything complex like this before.

A good wooden spoon and some fast stirring will make a fine roux for your sausage gravy; a whisk is just "nice to have" in this case.

As to biscuits, you can either cut in the butter with two knives, used scissor-fashion, or mix it in with your fingers. Frozen butter grated is marvelous, but you can get decent biscuits without that. You could either gently pat the dough out vs. rolling it, or find a good drop biscuit recipe and skip both patting or rolling.

Yes, you could make scrambled eggs in the N-S pot you have, and again, a wooden spoon will be useful here.

With the constraints you're under, you won't get visual or gourmet perfection, nor should you worry if you don't. This is rustic, country food made for well over a hundred years by folks without electricity, French wire whisks, non-stick skillets, or the internet.

Making Biscuits is like the game of Chess: simple to learn, you master it with time. Biscuits and gravy rock! Don't be daunted, and just keep making biscuits, with or without sausage and gravy.

A wine bottle or similar can stand in for a rolling pin. Alternately, you can make drop biscuits instead of rolling out and cutting the dough. Just drop big spoonfuls of dough onto the baking sheet once the dough comes together.

bloodboy - this was a staple when I was growing up, although a little bit different. My dad taught me how to make it when I was a kid. Here's a simple version - I'd suggest starting simply the first time and then ramp up.

Brown breakfast sausage in the not a non-stick pan and set sausage aside.

Using the liberated fat/drippings, stir in flour and make a blonde roux, about four or five minutes.

Whisk in cold milk just a little at a time, stirring out the lumps (a fork will do in a pinch). Keep adding milk and stirring each time, waiting a few minutes between additions. Stop when you get a good gravy consistency. Coarse black pepper and salt (I use ham BT Bouillon ham base instead of salt). Don't add the sausage to the gravy.

Fry eggs over easy rather than scramble. The runny yolks are even better.

Buy pre-made frozen biscuits and pop them in the oven. Mary B's or Pillsbury Homestyle.

Crumble the biscuits, crumble the sausage on top, place the eggs on top of that, use a knife and fork to cut the eggs in, and top with the gravy. It was an every other Saturday thing growing up.

My online standby for Southern country meats is Broadbent. They have prize-winning hams they sell whole or in various kinds of slices, as well as country smoked bulk sausage and some of the best dry-cured bacon I've tasted. Lower prices than most such suppliers as well.

Most supermarkets in Indiana sell vacuum-sealed slices of country ham (usually in the fresh meat section, not the deli). The popularity of country ham has grown over the years, and it's popping up outside of the south.